29th September 2016 As part of the Ministry of Internal Affairs – Culture Division continuous endeavour to promote and enhance the culture and traditions of Tonga, traditional dancing classes have been conducted at the Tonga National Culture since August of this year for young intelligent youths to proudly retain the authentic culture and traditional Tongan performing arts.
Since the Tonga National Cultural Centre is 100% Government ownership, the reconstruction of the Tonga National Cultural Centre is to safeguard and maintain thus promoting the places and sites of cultural significance. It allowed the revival of teaching Tongan traditional dance, music, arts and plants.
The Culture Division of the Ministry is organizing a dinner and floor show to showcase traditional dance and to mark the completion of this very first cohort and also other various achievements. The expected outcome is:
To maintain traditional Tongan performing arts;
To conserve and maintain challenges in the changing world towards our living culture;
To familiarize the youth of today with the existing traditional Tongan dance.
The Ministry wishes to mark this special event for the completion of the first cohort of traditional dancing with a certificate of achievement award ceremony. The Guest of Honour, His Excellency Mr. Yukio Numata (Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan to Tonga) will be awarding these certificates. The event is to be held on Friday 30 th September, 2016 at the Tonga National Culture Centre, 6:30pm. The program will resume with tree planting of traditional Tongan plants followed by a certificate award ceremony together with dinner and floor show to celebrate this special occasion.
About one hundred and fifty guests have been invited to witness this first event of traditional Tongan dancing class to preserve our Tongan tau’olunga.
END.
Issued by the: Ministry of Internal Affairs